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    Home / Recipes / Breads

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake

    By Heather · Published: Dec 6, 2017 · Updated: Mar 21, 2022 · This post may contain affiliate links · See the privacy policy linked in my footer.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake is sweet and tart and creamy-- everything you want from a cake! It's a sweet pineapple vanilla cake topped with crushed pineapple and dreamy cream cheese and whipped cream topping. 

    Piece of Hawaiian Wedding Cake on plate

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake

    Many, many moons ago when I was going to cooking school, I spent my last term interning as a cake decorator at a local bakery. And when I say interning, I mean I got 2 days of training and then was set free to be THE cake decorator for the entire shop. No pressure, right?

    The first few weeks were a little bit sketchy, but for the most part, I was able to hold my own when orders came in. That is until we got an order for 26, 10” 6 layer dessert cakes that were all different flavors due the next day.

    Dessert cakes are super easy to decorate but the most time-consuming part was making all of the mousses, fillings and whipped creams they needed. I usually kept a good supply of baked cakes in the freezer to pull out and decorate as needed, but this time my stash was completely depleted and I needed to bake the cakes too.

    Oy.

    If you’ve ever decorated a cake, you know that you typically end up with a nice little pile of cake scraps from leveling it off.

    Having made so many cakes my pile wasn’t so little anymore and quickly grew into a mountain of fierce temptation. I hadn’t stopped for lunch and dinner time had passed and my mountain was magically disappearing. It turned out that little bits of chocolate cake topped with dabs of fresh raspberry mousse tasted pretty darn good and I was stressed out.

    So, I ate it.

    I ate lots of it.

    Hawaiian Wedding cake in pan with pieces cut out

    It really is incredible how much you can eat when you’re just taking in little bits at a time. Incredible and disgusting. Oh, and delicious.

    So what does this have to do with my Hawaiian wedding cake recipe?

    Here’s the deal- Once you make this it’s going to be sitting in your fridge and every so often you are going to grab a fork and take a little bite straight out of the pan. All will be fine and well until you go to thrust that fork into some creamy cake and there’s none left.

    You ate it.

    You ate it all. Basically the moral of the story is to not be like me. Can you handle that?

    How to Make Hawaiian Cake

    Now, onto the cake! I honestly don’t know the real reason why this is called Hawaiian Wedding Cake. I’m just going to go out on a limb and say that it’s because it’s eaten at Hawaiian weddings but don’t quote me on that. What I do know is that it’s a great summer dessert because it’s cold, creamy, and fruity.

    You’ll start by draining 2, 20 oz cans of crushed pineapple. Make sure to save the juice as we’ll be using it in the cake batter.

    Crushed Pineapple Draining for use in Hawaiian Wedding Cake

    Prepare a yellow cake mix as directed on the box, substituting the water with the drained pineapple juice.

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake Batter Being Mixed

    Bake in a 9x13” pan and let cool completely- Make sure it’s not warm at all or it can become soggy. With a wooden skewer, poke holes all through the cake.

    Hawaiian Wedding cake after being baked

    Spread the drained pineapple evenly over the top of the cake.

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake topped with crushed pineapple

    Using an electric mixer, beat 2 cups of whipping cream with some sugar until medium-stiff peaks form and transfer into a large bowl.

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake Whipped Cream and Cream Cheese Topping

    Use the mixer again to beat some very soft cream cheese and then slowly add milk to the bowl a little at a time. Beat until smooth before each addition and scrape the sides of the bowl frequently. Adding slowly and scraping the bowl will assure that you don’t end up with a chunky cream cheese mess. Once all of the milk is incorporated, pour in one small packet of vanilla pudding mix and beat for 2 minutes. Gently fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream and spread evenly over the top of the pineapple on the cake.

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake Cream Cheese and Whipped Cream Frosting

    It will likely come all the way to the top and maybe even over the side of the pan but just pile it on there the best that you can. The thick layer of pudding is an awesome compliment to the cake and pineapple below.

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake in 9x13" pan

    Sprinkle some toasted coconut over the top and you’re all set to go!

    Want More Easy Dessert Recipes?

    • Easy Black Forrest Cake
    • Easy Red Velvet Cupcakes
    • Chocolate Chunk Pizookie
    Hawaiian Wedding Cake | heatherlikesfood.com

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake

    Hawaiian Wedding Cake is sweet and tart and creamy-- everything you want from a cake! It's a sweet pineapple vanilla cake topped with crushed pineapple and a dreamy cream cheese and whipped cream topping. 
    By Heather Cheney
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 1 hour
    Cook Time: 30 minutes
    Chill Time: 1 hour
    Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
    Servings: 16 servings

    Ingredients

    • 18.25 ounce package yellow cake mix
    • 40 ounces crushed pineapple drained with juice reserved-- 2, 20 ounce cans
    • 3.4 ounce package instant vanilla pudding mix
    • 2 cups cold milk 2% fat or higher
    • 8 ounce package cream cheese
    • 2 cups whipping cream
    • 3 tablespoons sugar
    • 1 cup flaked coconut toasted

    Instructions

    • Drain pineapple, and reserve the juice. Set aside.
    • Prepare the cake according to the packaged directions, using pineapple juice instead of water. Bake in a 9x13” pan. Let cool completely.
    • Once cool, use a wooden skewer to poke holes all over the entire cake.
    • Spread the drained pineapple over the top of the cake and set aside.
    • In an electric mixer, beat whipping cream and sugar until medium-stiff peaks form and transfer into a large bowl.
    • In an electric mixer, beat softened cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add the milk a little at a time, beating until smooth between each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl frequently.
    • When all the milk has been added, mix in the pudding mix and beat for 2 minutes. Gently fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream, mixing until combined.
    • Spread mixture evenly over the top of the pineapple. Top the cake with toasted coconut, chill, and serve!

    Nutrition Facts

    Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 6025 kcal | Carbohydrates: 706 g | Protein: 66 g | Fat: 339 g | Saturated Fat: 219 g | Cholesterol: 950 mg | Sodium: 5534 mg | Potassium: 2721 mg | Fiber: 28 g | Sugar: 455 g | Vitamin A: 11115 IU | Vitamin C: 57.4 mg | Calcium: 2288 mg | Iron: 16 mg

    Nutrition and Food Safety Disclosure

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Nicole says

      May 26, 2020 at 6:04 pm

      That sounds delicious! I love the cream. I was also interested in incorporating a layer in the middle. Never made a double layer cake before.

      Reply
    2. Sharon P says

      June 07, 2019 at 10:32 am

      Do you use 1 20 oz can of pineapple or two? In the article it says 2 but in the written recipe it says 1. Please advise.

      Reply
      • Heather Cheney says

        August 07, 2019 at 1:35 pm

        2, 20 ounce cans. I just updated the recipe. Thanks!

        Reply
    3. joanna says

      February 15, 2018 at 10:28 am

      Have you changed anything recently? I have made this a few times and it was amazing but I made it last night and the frosting did not set, I don't recall if anything is different or what the heck I did wrong.

      thank you

      Reply
    4. Diana says

      August 12, 2015 at 3:26 pm

      How many days ahead can you make this recipe?

      Thanks,
      Diana

      Reply
      • Heather Cheney says

        August 21, 2015 at 1:25 pm

        It sits well for a couple of days, but you wouldn't want to do any longer than that.

        Reply
    5. Brooke Bready says

      June 04, 2015 at 5:52 am

      This looks amazing! Do you think these could be made into cupcakes too? Or that just be a total mess?

      Reply
      • Heather Cheney says

        June 09, 2015 at 12:53 am

        I think cupcakes would be lovely! It might be messy but probably not too bad. Maybe don't fill the cupcakes up all the way so the pineapple has a little room to sit on top?

        Reply
    6. Richard says

      May 27, 2015 at 7:09 pm

      I would like the recipe from scratch for the cake mix instead of using the box. Please email to me if you can. Thank you.

      Reply
    7. Sue's Akorn Shop says

      April 24, 2015 at 6:06 am

      5 stars
      All I can say about this is "YUMMY"!

      Reply
      • Heather Cheney says

        May 05, 2015 at 11:20 am

        It definitely is! 🙂

        Reply
    8. Nicole Casey says

      September 29, 2014 at 3:41 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks for the recipe I just made it but I made it into a trifle and also soaked the layers with just a bit of coconut rum and I also added a vanilla instant pudding mix to the cake mix as well. Made this for my friend who loves everything coconut I think she'll be happy.

      Reply
    9. soula says

      May 02, 2014 at 11:43 am

      How many servings?

      Reply
      • Heather says

        May 21, 2014 at 8:22 am

        I'd say about 12.

        Reply
    10. Tony says

      March 26, 2014 at 5:42 am

      5 stars
      We'll making this cake was somewhat of a changle for me. I always feel safe with just the plain old out of the box cake! Just want to thank you, the family members loved it.An older guy having fun in the kitchen.

      Reply
    11. Tammy Moore says

      December 30, 2013 at 7:05 pm

      I am looking for a carrot cake that has pineapple and walnuts in it can you please help thanks

      Reply
    12. Donna says

      December 28, 2013 at 1:39 pm

      Recipes look delicious,like to try new ones ,thanks and look forward to trying some,

      Reply
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